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911 My Baby Drowned
Location: Merlin, Oregon Date: October 3, 1991 Story When Don and Tammy Nethercot moved their family to the small town of Merlin, Oregon, they thought their children would be safe. But on the afternoon of October 3, 1991, just a few weeks after settling into their new home, one of their worst fears came to pass. 7-year-old Desiree and 6-year-old Danielle were playing with some of their new friends in the backyard and Tammy asked them to keep an eye on their 2-year-old brother, Christopher, while she worked inside. "He's an explorer and I guess that's like normal for 2-year-olds to check everything out," said Tammy. "We put up a barricade along the side of the pool. It was just like makeshift for the time being." Christopher was riding his bike and he stopped at the pool to look at it. Danielle and Desiree were still playing when Tammy came out to check on them. She looked around and noticed that Christopher was nowhere to be seen. "Where's Chris?" she asked the girls. " I didn't see him go anywhere but my mom said, 'Look for Christopher, Danielle,'" said Desiree. "I went looking for him. I thought he was on the swing set but he wasn't." Danielle went to the pool area thinking he couldn't possibly be there. She took a peek and there he was floating face down in the pool. Danielle screamed and Desiree called 911. "My baby brother drowned in the pool and he's only two years old!" she cried. "I ran in to call 911 because it was an emergency and if I didn't call 911, he'd die." "I had my baby boy in my arms and there was no muscle tone, no life, nothing," said Tammy. Desiree handed Tammy the phone. "He was in the pool face down. I think he drowned," Tammy screamed frantically. 911 dispatcher Katie Duncan joined dispatcher Lisa Small on the line. Lisa told Tammy to calm down. The nearest EMTs, including Jess Webb, headed to the house. But they were seven miles away. "About a month before, I had a 10-year-old drown on me in the Rogue River. I was afraid this was going to turn out the same way and it hurts pretty hard with kids." Katie asked Tammy what color Christopher was. She said his lips were blue. Katie asked if he was breathing and she said no. Katie then asked if his head was tilted back. "Put your mouth over his mouth and nose and blow two little breaths to fill up his lungs." Tammy did so. Katie asked if he was breathing but he wasn't. "She's on a roller coaster and it would've been easy to lose her. If she looks down again and realizes the baby's not breathing, we would've lost the only rescuer we had at the scene. As soon we realized there wasn't a pulse, I had to control her and get her back into the sequence," said Katie. She told Tammy to tip Christopher's head back and watch for his chest to rise. She asked again if he was breathing and she said he wasn't. "Listen to me. I'm going to tell you what to do next. Put the heel of your hand in the middle of the child's chest between the nipples and push down one inch 5 times," said Katie. "In a rural setting especially where this address was 10, 15, 20 minutes, or longer until the very first unit arrives." Thirteen minutes after Christopher was pulled from the pool, the nearest Advanced Life Support ambulance was still more than 3 miles away. "I'm not an EMT, I'm not a doctor or nurse, just a typical mother," said Tammy. Katie was still talking to her and giving her instructions but she was very hysterical. "He didn't have any color in him except his lips were purplish blue. I was feeling scared because I was thinking that he'd die," said Desiree. Mike Worly heard about the drowning from a neighbor. "It scared me to death the first time I looked at him. There was no life in him." He took over the call. Katie didn't know where he came from but he became a coach and she told him to keep giving CPR to Christopher. Christopher spat up water and Tammy rolled him on his side. Finally, the fire department arrived and Christopher started breathing on his own. Katie stayed on the line until the ambulance crew got there then hung up. They did their best to do their part and it was someone else's turn to do it. Minutes later, the Advanced Life Support Unit arrived and paramedic Jim Bard took over Christopher's care. "Immediately I went to the child and he did have a pulse but was only breathing 4 or 5 times a minute," said Jim. He whispered to a fireman, "We've got to hurry. Were going to lose him if we don't." While Christopher was being prepared for transport to the hospital, Tammy called Don at work and told him what happened. "I wanted to just floor it and just get home. About 2 miles from the house I met the ambulance," said Don. "I was like being in a tunnel. I didn't know if my little boy was alive or not." Jim was actually grieving for Christopher. It was like he was dying and he was dying with him. He didn't expect him to make it. Christopher was admitted to Josephine Memorial Hospital and examined by doctor Jim Jeason. "He was extremely critical. Initial assessment was very dismal regarding the child recovering neurologically. Jim Bard went off duty a half hour later "It was a bad night. I cried all the way home," he explained. Christopher was taken to Doernbecher Children's Hospital more than 200 miles away. Don and Tammy drove through the night for five hours straight, not knowing what condition he would be in when they finally got to see him there. "He was still hooked up to all the monitors and everything," said Tammy. Don explained, "But he looked like he had a little more color and he looked at Tammy and he said 'Mama.'" She said it was a great feeling she couldn't explain. It was like rebirth or something. After 2 days in the hospital, Christopher was released without any sign of permanent injuries. Tammy explains that they don't send him out with Desiree and Danielle and say, "Okay, you watch him" anymore, because they're not old enough to watch. They're playing too, so she and Don watch him. "But if you have a pool, you got to make it's secure. Not just 95% 'Yeah it's going to be okay', make sure that pool is 100%," she said. "It was just unbelievable. He goes to being in critical shape to being home running around. He's just perfect," said Don. One month after the accident, the Nethercot family got a chance to thank the dispatchers who worked so hard to save Christopher's life. "Knowing the child is here is a result extremely gratifying. It makes everything we do worthwhile," concludes Katie. Category:1991 Category:Oregon Category:Drownings